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We’ve all heard the stat: most restaurants close within a year of opening. Pinning down the reason why can be tough, but it often comes down to location, menu, and not responding to what the market is looking for.

So credit should be handed to restaurant owners who take the time to listen, reflect, and adjust their operation to stay relevant.

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Jang has since closed, but hasn’t changed ownership (or even kitchen and serving staff, as far as I could tell). Instead, the team behind Jang has introduced a new concept and menu under the name Izakaya O-Tori, and if my recent visits (twice in a week!) are any indication, this might be the revamp that works.

O-Tori joins a list of several other izakayas all over the city, a likely attempt to capitalize on the growing trend of the casual Japanese pubs in Edmonton.

The menu is split into two sections, with a half-dozen ramen bowls available along with several appetizer items and a few other larger plates as well. According to our server, the ramen is the favourite among O-Tori’s early customers, and a quick scan around the room confirmed it as guests huddled over steaming bowls of broth and noodles. My husband and I decided to try their signature beef broth (gyukotsu), which sets O-Tori apart from other ramen joints in the city, which mostly feature the more popular pork (tonkotsu) broth.

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Friends, after trying the beef variety, I may never look back. We shared the spicy version ($16) , which includes O-Tori’s house-made spicy paste. The bone broth is rich and deep in flavour, thick and velvety with an almost creamy consistency thanks to the addition of the paste. The bowl was filled with rib-sticking noodles, made fresh locally, and piled high with slices of tender roast beef, roasted red peppers, diced red onions, pickled jalapeno, slivered green onions and a soft-boiled egg. After a few bites I was regretting my decision to share the bowl, and found myself craving it the next day (and the next, and the next… you get the idea).

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Satisfied but curious to try more, we turned our attention to the rest of the menu, which features a handful of starters from gyoza to chicken karaage, a few yakitori options, and some rice-based dishes like sushi rolls and poke bowls. Our server recommended the waffle fries as an accompaniment to our ramen, so we chose the Tori Nori ($12), which features teriyaki chicken. Think of this dish as a Japanese-style poutine — a hot skillet of waffle fries is topped with mozzarella cheese, plenty of tender chicken, sliced dry nori, caramelized onions, and my favorite bit, a soft poached egg. We poked at the springy egg, releasing soft yolk to bring the ingredients together. The flavours mixed well, but there weren’t enough waffle fries to stand up to the weight of the chicken. A bit of an adjustment on the ratios would help.

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Wanting a full izakaya experience, we also tried a couple of yakitori skewers, the ubiquitous Japanese pub food. Don’t sleep on these excellent options — the beef brisket ($4 for two skewers) was incredibly tender, the fat rendered down nicely and the meat practically falling off the stick after one bite. The cheese chicken ($3.50 for two) was similarly delectable, the meat juicy with a slightly smoky flavour thanks to the grill and topped with a gooey slice of marble cheese. I could easily knock back a few beers with a plate of these.

We also gave the dragon wings ($10) a try, spicy fried chicken wings smothered in O-Tori’s house-made spicy sauce. Our server warned us these wings were not for the faint of heart, but we forged ahead anyway. The breading was perfect, crispy but not too thick. The name is also perfect — we felt like we were breathing fire after just a few bites. If you like spicy food, these are a must, but be prepared to sweat. Our server, thankfully, kept our water glasses filled.

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My mouth on fire and needing something fresh to cool it down, we set our sights on the tuna tataki ($12). The plate was beautifully assembled, with seven or eight pieces of plump rare seared tuna topped with fresh bright greens, black garlic and a honey yuzu miso dressing. The addition of crispy rice combined to create the perfect textural bite.

Izakaya O-Tori, located at 11212 Jasper Avenue. /Supplied

Throughout our meal we sipped on a couple of Hitachino Nest beers ($9/bottle), which are on offer along with a few other Korean and Japanese options such as Cass and Sapporo. O-Tori also offers an intriguing list of cocktails and sake if beer isn’t your taste.

Here’s hoping this new addition to Edmonton’s izakaya scene maintains a strong foothold — if only so I can keep going back for that incredible beef broth ramen.

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